How to save your sanity on a road trip with kids

Disclosure: Post sponsored by XFINITY, but all opinions are my own. Please see below for additional disclosure. This post contains affiliate links.

We’ve done the road trip thing a couple times now. By no means are we experts, but we have a few tricks up our sleeves to help us survive. In fact, we have a 14 hour road trip scheduled this summer. With 4 kids. Good times, good times (at least that’s what we keep telling ourselves!)

So, without further ado…

7 sanity saving tips for a road trip with kids.

1. Snacks

Have a lot of snacks in a large variety. Snacks that you don’t typically let them eat. Snacks that can change the tone of the ride. Fruit snacks, lollipops, gum, goldfish, jelly beans, whatever their favorite treats are. Get them! When things go south quickly, a favorite treat can save the day. Don’t forget to also have protein snacks too so they stick with them for a bit.

2. Activities

New games, new sticker pads, new marker books, new coloring books, new reading books. Activities surrounding your destination (Disney princess books for a Disney trip, a book about a new state you will be traveling to). Anything age appropriate that will keep them entertained and intrigued but doesn’t have to be plugged in or make noise. Sometimes the kids need an activity that won’t keep their siblings awake. And sometimes, the quiet is just nice.

3. Tablet (and chargers)

I know we’ve all heard Google Fiber is coming to town soon, so I wanted to do a little research to find out what’s going to be available when it gets here. I teamed up with XFINITY to learn about X1 DVR and how it can help our family on the road.

With 4 kids in at least 2 different age ranges, the electronic entertainment aspect is a bit of a challenge. The younger two are happy to watch a movie on our van’s DVD player, but the older two usually want shows that fit into the tween category.

With an option like the XFINITY X1 DVR the girls can record their favorite shows (up to 500GB of storage) and take them on the road with us! Some of their favorites are Jessie, Kickin’ It, and Wild Kratts. The possibilities are endless! You can’t take shows with you with Google Fiber! This is definitely perfect for our long road trip!

If my kids will sit and watch a movie or a show and not ask no less than eleventy-billion times “are we there yet?” then it’s totally worth it. Between digital copies of movies and the ability to download to X1 DVR, CDs/music files and apps you will be ready hit the road. Check out the FAQs for more info.

Pro tip: Make sure you have a nice set of headphones for each kid! There is nothing like the noise level of four different recorded shows playing at the same time!

4. Travel Friends, Blankets or Lovies

Don’t leave home without them. Don’t let the kiddos go overboard. We let the kids pick one small friend (stuffed animal) and one small blanket. It made them more comfortable in the car. For the youngest, we have a handful of pacifiers and her lovies because when toddlers get fussy, they throw stuff! And when she calms down, I want to be able to hand her another one.

5. No sit down meals

The last thing you want to make them do after sitting in the car for a couple hours is sit down. And, then expect them to behave? I mean I do expect them to behave and I know they will, but they’ve been in the car. They want to run and stretch their legs. Yes, we’ve been that family that stops at the golden arches only to use the restroom and let them play and then grab just a small snack. We then eat that snack and anything else we’ve packed (if it’s meal time) in the car. After #1 (snacks), they usually aren’t very hungry anyways.

6. No big drinks

Yes, they can have drinks. But, they are rationed. With four kids, it’s almost guaranteed that one will need to pee while the others are asleep. So, we try to limit the pee stops as much as possible. Of course, we don’t want they dehydrated, either.

7. Car Maintenance

This one is from Mr. Serious. Get the oil changed. Get the car in for an over all check up. Check and rotate the tires. Just make sure everything is in good working order. Nobody wants to be stranded on the side of the road because of something you could have caught at home. Just a little added insurance! (And, if you do a really long trip, get everything checked once you arrive at your destination, too.)

Hopefully, these tips will help keep you and your kiddos relatively sane in the car.

Do you have anything to add that has helped you keep your sanity on the road?

XFINITY partnered with bloggers such as me for this program. As part of this program, I received compensation for my time. They did not tell me what to purchase or what to say about any product mentioned in these posts. XFINITY believes that consumers and bloggers are free to form their own opinions and share them in their own words. XFINITY’s policies align with WOMMA Ethics Code, FTC guidelines and social media engagement recommendations.

Great tips! It goes hand in hand with #3 tablet/dvd but don’t forget the car chargers (and for your phone too) and the regular chargers for the hotel/destination. in addition to movies and music, audiobooks are great too – maybe learn spanish on the way? lol.

We like to minimize the drive time so bathroom breaks are coincided with gas fillups, and food are to-go like you mentioned.

This goes with #7, make sure you have a spare tire, and know how to change one.

For longer rides we packed the essentials in a small bag to keep in the car- change of clothes for little kids, sweater/hoodie/jacket if going from warm to cold climate, toothbrushes and toothpaste to freshen up at truckstop bathrooms.

The days I miss when my son was tiny. It was so much easier to travel as the most we travel is 5.5 hours away and he would sleep 70% of that. One pit stop and it would be good. Now even a tablet or movie only last him 1/4 of the trip.
Thank you for the tips.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Comment

Name *

Email *

Website

Primary Sidebar

Krystyn has been blogging since 2005. She is a sarcasm-loving, straight-shooting, jeans and t-shirts wearing, wife and mom of four girls (ages 10, 8, 5 and 3). She blogs about life as a mom and wife and includes anecdotes, funny stories (both mommy and other), family travel and more. She currently resides in the Atlanta suburbs.
email: krystyn at reallyareyouserious dot com Read More…

@SeriousKrystyn on Instagram

Amazon awesome

Footer

Connect with Krystyn

Krystyn has been blogging since 2005. She is a sarcasm-loving, straight-shooting, jeans and t-shirts wearing, wife and mom of four girls (ages 10, 8, 5 and 3). She blogs about life as a mom and wife and includes anecdotes, funny stories (both mommy and other), family travel and more. She currently resides in the Atlanta suburbs.
email: krystyn at reallyareyouserious dot com Read More…